Monday, June 22, 2015

Kansas City Royals Identity Refresh

This is a concept I put together last summer, but never got around to posting. I recently revisited it, making a few changes and finally creating a finished product. The original idea was an identity refresh that would hopefully inspire the Royals to return to their winning ways. Obviously they managed to do that without me, but I still finished my project.

The goal here was to reconnect the Royals with their roots. I researched Kansas City's uniform history in search of key design elements worth including. There are three main elements I decided to address.

First, I adjusted the color scheme. The current shade of blue comes out as drab and dull, so I replaced it with a more true version of royal blue. The dark gold shade currently used has also been dumped, replaced by a shade inspired by the old days of Royals baseball. Lastly, powder blue has been matched to the shade used in the 1980's and added to the color scheme.

Next, I analyzed the logo situation. Kansas City has had the same general logo since the beginning, with minor changes taking place over the years. While studying their logo I noticed many small issues, everything from the inclusion of a black drop shadow to the uneven thickness of the white stroke. I created a modernized version, complete with an altered KC logo. Also included is a retro-inspired alternate logo.

Lastly, I studied the word marks and typography used by the Royals. I decided to modify the scripts KC uses on their jerseys to better fit the chest area. The classic Royals script has been thickened and adjusted, and the Kansas City script redone. Following the theme of thicker lettering, inspired by the Royals' original uniforms, I created a bold block font for use on the numerals and names.

Now for the uniforms. Another design element I picked up on from the Royals' uniform history was piping. At some point they dropped the piping around the neck, but I decided to bring it back here. The uniforms are pretty simple, but every detail is thought out and intentional. I've included a home, road (including alternate road cap), alternate, Sunday alternate, and batting practice sets.

There you have it! Feel free to let me know if you have any feedback. Not the most exciting concept, but hopefully I met my objective.